


A Human Worth A Galra

by ZeroOverdrive



Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: Father x son, M/M, Season 2 spoilers kinda, Smut
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-03-23
Updated: 2017-06-22
Packaged: 2018-10-09 12:13:46
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 2
Words: 4,634
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10411905
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ZeroOverdrive/pseuds/ZeroOverdrive
Summary: Thace survives the attack on Zarkon and has joined the Paladins. After giving Keith the news of their shared blood, he quickly learns the sad life his son had to face without him, and plans to selfishly indulge himself to fix it.





	1. What Have You Done

**Author's Note:**

> Son Keith x Father Thace. Mentions of Sheith/ hurt/ comfort etc.

Thace survives the attack on Zarkon and has joined the Paladins. After giving Keith the news of their shared blood, he quickly learns the sad life his son had to face without him, and plans to selfishly indulge himself to fix it.

~~~~~~~~~

Zarkon was gone.  
Zarkon...was gone.  
Zarkon...was really gone?

No matter how much it replayed, the red paladin couldn’t quite find a proper tune for it. The monster who controlled the black lion, the one who destroyed his own planet, the one who had fought alongside Allura’s father, the one who destroyed their leader and stripped him of stability, the one who captured and tortured so many innocents for domination…

But had they really done it? 

Keith didn’t find it unusual that everyone else was busy celebrating their victory, especially considering the spontaneous setbacks they’ve dealt with, mostly the teludav that had held so much weight as of lately. But was it so unreasonable to step away from the charred rubble and mangled metal to just think? What are they going to do if Zarkon is truthfully gone for good? What would happen to Voltron? The universe wouldn’t need the paladins anymore...they wouldn’t need Allura or Coran anymore…

After a few hours under a heavy barrage of smiles and laughter, booming music and dance moves from across the galaxy, the high fives and trading memories, everyone would head to their quarters and prepare for tomorrow. But what would happen tomorrow? Would the princess and Coran allow them to return to Earth? Would the paladins just take blue back to the desert and leave the rest with the castle-side from that being black’s original place? What will they tell everyone when they ask where they were? Their families? The garrison?

Then again,nobody would ask Keith. He didn’t grow up with any siblings who might miss him like Lance or Pidge, he didn’t have the garrison wondering whether or not he was still breathing like Shiro, and he certainly didn’t have the most radiating and uplifting personality like Hunk’s which was hard to ignore. It had always been...just Keith. 

Throughout the entirety of fighting Zarkon, he had no reason to cry because, who was he going to cry over? Who was he suppose to be missing? Sometimes Lance cried for his many little brothers and sisters, his loving mother and supportive father. Pidge-who was mostly consumed by determination to find her family-never really cried. Or at least not to him. Probably Shiro. Or maybe she could just hide it well?

All those conversations about how amazing and spectacular and unique and fun Earth was could be classified as inclusive, although the red paladin never pitched with everyone else.  
He lived in the desert, secluded. The only sentiment he had was his blade. And yet he never fully knew why. It just became part of his character since he could remember. It was like another heart or a spare limb.

Everyone carried memories, he carried this metal. But now his family were the other paladins. Things were different now. He had a reason to return to Earth, he had people to miss, and people who’d make him feel missed. He saw Shiro as a big brother and a father. Pidge was like a witty small-big sister who too had felt what it was like to have something missing from your life. Hunk was the motherly, cuddly big-little brother. Lance...Lance was like the...the other twin who’s personality was on the other side of the spectrum. Keith also took Coran into account as well. He was the goofy slapstick uncle who you could never stop smiling at or laugh at his jokes, even if they were bland. His confidence and intelligence were as indulgent as Lance’s and he was grateful for that. Allura, he felt indifferent. She still held some prejudice against his galra half. But she insisted that she was trying to tweak herself. So basically, they were his reason to care about anything during the aftermath. He was happy that these were the people-and extraterrestrials he called family. 

And then there was Thace.

It took Keith a while to even acknowledge the fact that he was born to an abomination race of pure malice. The one who caused it was on the ship, dressed in a black tuxedo of all things. As if he were some gentleman. The same galra which left him on his own all this time, leaving him only a dagger and over a decade of questions. Keith couldn’t deny that he wanted answers, badly. But there was just this part of him that nipped at his better judgement. He didn’t want them from him. Not after what he had told him. That they shared the poison in their veins, that he purposefully left him to his own. Keith felt like such idiot- he was so conflicted with everything. Here there was; a primary source willing to give him everything he wants; but then again-he was afraid. Afraid of Thace using this as a sign of forgiveness. This sudden vulnerability, perhaps? No. He could never, ever give him the time of day nor the proposition. 

So he avoided Thace as much as possible once they had returned to the castle. To his dismay, Thace was quick to began his assault by offering him a refreshment. Keith however sought to distract himself by walking to the glass windows to watch the passing scraps of armor of Zarkons. As much as he would have loved to bask in the team’s victory but there was just this tick that kept popping up. This bastard was persistent. Thace returned with two cups filled with some juice they’d bought at the space mall awhile back. If he wasn’t so parched from the fight he would have emptied it back in the carton.

Keith accepted it with a low ‘thank you’. Not a moment sooner he throws his head back and empties the cup, the cold beverage relieving him as it added moisture to his dry mouth. Once hollowed, he crushed the paper cup in his palm and gave a quiet sigh. Looking back to Thace, his face had ‘well damn’ inscribed on it. He stared at Keith for a moment, then the secondary drink, back to Keith, and stuck his hand out, an eyebrow raised. When Keith didn’t budge, Thace pointed to him and gently rattled the cup. His second offer. And god dammit he was really thirsty! Keith snatched it and killed it the same as the first. Thace chuckled at this. It almost looked like a genuine fatherly smile.  
This time Keith tried to properly thank the galra, but it was drowned out from the music

‘YOU GOTTA FIGHT,’

“Thanks”

“What?”

‘FOR YOUR RIGHT’

“I said-”

“Beg your pardon?”

‘TO PAAAARTY!’

They could feel the floor shake as the bass kicked up and the other’s screeched the lyrics.

Now Keith just looked exhausted from all of it. The fight, his thoughts, the booming music and the horrible singing.

Thace looks him over for a moment and then points to the doors leading to the hallway.

Keith glares at him. He points back and forth between themselves and mimics the galra’s motion and receives a nod. But Keith shakes his head and crosses his arms. Thace shrugs and mouths “why?”. Keith simply shakes his head again. He points to himself and the door once again. Then he points at Thace and the ground. I go, you stay. Thace then takes the role of the mime and takes Keith’s posture. How had they been exchanging these glares now? All these-gestures and hand signals? It was as though seconds became minutes, minutes became hours and so forth.

Neither of them left each other’s peripheral vision.

But, feeling fatigued from the day, Keith caved and gestured for Thace to shadow. Grateful for his victory, he followed without hesitation.

The change of the atmosphere was instant once the doors closed behind them, the music almost faint entirely, the floor was stilled and the air felt tighter. “This way,” Keith said, pointing down the corridor “Say what you gotta before we reach my room”. 

The castle was large, that was obvious, but the spacing between rooms wasn’t so much; probably for the paladins convenience. If he had to make a rough estimate based on how far they were now, how slow Keith walked, and how slow he could walk for additional time, Thace concluded to,at most, four minutes and thirty four seconds. If he asked at least three questions every thirty seconds ( including a response ), he could obtain sufficient information about his kit ( term for child-mostly young children ). 

“Ey, you spacing out?”

Thace flinched, yanked from his train of thought. He doesn’t try to cover his tracks either, “My apologies, proceed”. Keith looked him over for a few moments before slowly turning and began to walk down the hallway.

“So youngling, I can assume the Altean’s have treated you well?” good. This was equivocal. How Keith received it would help to pick apart his behavior.

“I guess. Coran’s goofy most of the time, but he’s focused when he needs to be” he replied fondly.

“And the princess?”

“She’s…” he halts to find the words for his relationship with Allura. They never had much solo interactions and he wasn’t freed from her cold shoulder just yet. “Forget it” he resumed “next question”

At first, Keith was counting every step until he could tell the other to fuck off, but somewhere along the way he had lost track of his steps, their conversation began with small talk and short answers, then at some point, that vulnerable part of him...Thace had penetrated into his conscience. The personal place Keith spent years constructing and cultivating a barricade for, and this galra had broken it entirely in less than a day.

How are the current operations on Earth?  
How long have you worked Voltron?  
Do you believe that the battle is over, or the war?  
How much do you remember?

Each question was asked fluently, but every answer was rigid and leaked with internal conflict. There were somethings Keith could synthesize, but were not his own thoughts. Then there were things he simply couldn't comprehend, Keith or Thace. With each passing moment, the human grew notably frustrated. There were multiple reasons for this. The difficulty of the question, the lack of privacy revolving the question, the reasons behind asking the question and how blatantly the question was asked. Although it may cause cringing because of the sugarcoating, Keith would have prefered that Thace try to add a layer or two.  
And just like he had predicted, give or take a few seconds, they were in front of Keith’s quarters. And also to be expected, Thace’s company was no longer welcome.

“Okay old man, a deal's a deal. Scram”

Although taken aback by the colloquial language, Thace kept himself straightened. He wasn’t close to where he wanted to be in his data collection. What did he learn from the experience? Keith was a hot head, he had courage, he was determined and he was pained. Clearly there were far too many grey areas that were purposefully ambiguous. As much as he would have loved to poke more into his kits head, the atmosphere around him begged for mercy.

Buuut... 

“Excuse me, Keith, but...?” he spoke gently and hesitantly. Six seconds of silence passed before he spoke up again.

“Perhaps I may be permitted one last question?” Four seconds of silence.

Keith’s body slugs forward and his shoulders loosen as he arcs his back “Are you serious? Can’t it wait til like, when I don’t feel like shit?”

“I suppose it could wait, but I am sure the other blade members would prefer to have this knowledge as soon as possible”

Keith sighs loudly “What do you wanna know now? And this is your last question!”

Thace grins eagerly and claps his hands together. “Very well. Anyways, I’m curious about how you’ll carry The Blade’s lineage”

Keith cocks his head, not quite understanding what Thace was pitching. He could best compare it to be one of those moments. Every once and awhile a word or two of his would slip into galra native tongue, like a child learning a new language. Or Lance when he was flirting (and it soared over Keith’s head) and switched to Spanglish. 

“How you say...pass down our bloodline?”

“Y-you mean kids?”

He nods.

 

Keith could feel the heat radiating from his face “I uh, hadn’t really thought about that?” his cheeks painted peach, the thoughts of the his unrequited love which he had tried to efface from his head came crashing back down.

He remembered how he loved his smile, how he loved laugh, how he loved his voice and how he loved the companionship he brought.

Takashi Shirogane. The black paladin, the leader, the hero, the underdog.

He had brought Keith so much joy and memories and comfort since becoming a paladin of Voltron. Sure all the others had done the same, but there was more significance when it came from him. That’s how he became enraptured by him. 

Keith didn’t want to be reminded about it.

“Is your quarry finding a proper mate?” Thace asked in earnest with a curious tone.

Keith shook his head quickly “No! I mean…” he could feel himself choking on his words, “it’s not like I haven’t tried…”

Thace’s ears perked upward, his eyes widened, “Kit, you’ve already found a partner then?” he didn’t try to cover his excitement. His child had already found a suitable mate? Normally galra took until adulthood to start considering options but here was his son who started early!

Keith looked over his shoulder for any company before turning back and whispering “Can we talk inside please?”

He puts his hand up to the palm recognition system to the right of his door and it slides open. 

Keith stares at him before he motioned for the alien to go , “Are you going or what?t” he says firmly, almost like a child, Thace takes note of it. They enter the room “Thank you”, he says as he walks in. Keith clicks his tongue and rolls his eyes as he walks to his bed and sits on the edge.

Thace looks around the small and barren room. It didn’t take him long to bask in the emptiness. Even comparing it to that of a galra’s chamber, Keith’s room was beyond under decorative, and he was hoping to get a better idea of Keith’s personality from his bedroom.

 

Time seemed to have stilled as an awkward silence fell between them. Keith worn a pained face, but also regret. He looked so confused and Thace didn’t like it. He understands why the teen might react this way and he knew making amends would take more than a game of 20 questions, but everyone must start somewhere.   
“Well now that I have your attention…”breaking the tension, smirking “You shall inform me of your status on a kit of your own?”

Keith ran a hand through his locks, fingers caught in some knots left unracked, “How do I know I can trust you?”. Their eyes aren’t met but both could tell it would be better that way. Thace stepped forward, kneeling down, “Your trust is something I must earn, kit” he says pulling Keith’s hand from his hair “When I have earned it is your decision” he placed his own hand on the paladins head and gently combed out the knots with his claws.  
“Thace…” his voice became raspy and dry. He hiccuped.  
Please don’t let it be what he thinks…  
Keith looks up with watery eyes “Where the fuck do I start?”


	2. I Can Explain

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Sorry, this took so long! Anyways, we find out just what had upset poor Keith!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Please forgive any mistakes! Leave comments for suggestions please & thank you.  
> Please forgive the shortness, I take long breaks between writing which lack flow.

Thace was swift to wrap his arms around his kit, fingers again laced into his hair. Keith’s face was nuzzled comfortably in groomed neck fur, his stilled sobs and hiccups were muted while Thace stroked his head to settle him, “Shush now, I apologize”. Neither could tell how long they had stayed like this because the cries became louder, Keith’s nose continued to ooze, and Thace faithfully let him use his shirt as a tissue. There were few instances where Keith tried to speak, where he tried to pry himself away from his father's grasp but the comfort and the protection from reality were indispensable.

Finally, Keith had collected himself enough that he could pull away without second guessing. He apologized and took the filthy suit top, promising to wash it. Thace tried to make light of the situation by joking about how he’s thankful Keith hadn’t gotten his boogers on his nice white shirt. He was left unfazed.

Thace carefully brushed aside the stray bangs that had been glued by tears and rounded them around the paladin’s ear. His claw hooked each strand and gently skated across the pale skin, the other was busy effacing leftover traces of tears.   
“Dear boy-”  
“Thace, please-”  
“Quiet now” he shushed. And due to the absence of tissue paper, he wiped the liquid onto his pants. He wasn’t bothered by the direct contact of his kit’s bodily fluids, they shared blood, this wasn’t anything different. So finally Keith had settled. Although his face was still flushed, his cheeks still bloated and his eyes colored pink, he was still all the same beautiful.  
After his generous amount of attention towards his son passed, Thace stood up before pardoning himself and removed his article. Before any objections, he had pulled the pants down to his ankles, revealing black, tight, spandex that extended itself halfway to the kneecap, outlining every curve and crease of Thace’s waist to thighs. 

Although it was expected that a Blade and Empire member be well built, Keith wasn’t anticipating the massive curve tucked between his legs. Obviously ‘it’ and the spandex were not in agreement with one another as the restraints were clearly lacking and the bulge was suffocating.

But that was merely an observation. 

Keith’s eyes roamed up the torso once more before looking up to his face. Thankfully, Thace either hadn’t noticed or he didn’t mind wandering eyes. Keith prayed that it was the former.

Things only intensified when Thace bent down to retrieve his clothes from his ankles - that’s when the spandex had really worked their magic. His buttocks were sculpted and round, muscular; firm but tight judging by the cheek size...

Damn, he was staring again, but to his defense, the only one he had, was that this was an invasion of his personal space. 

“Now then, are you ready for a discussion?” his voice was low and smooth. He resumed stroking his kit’s head, earning a quiet sign of approval as his body relaxed. Keith took a deep breath then straightened himself. He would never have thought that he would tell this to anyone, let alone his galra parent. His knuckles drained of color as he clasps onto the bed sheets. The thin fabric tangled itself between his fingers - which he hadn’t realized till now how lacy the sheets truly were.

“It’s Shiro” he breathed. His lungs suddenly felt compressed and his mouth became dry, tears whelming up once again. He could suppress it for now. His gaze doesn’t meet the others. “It’s hard to explain. Hell, it’s hard to understand at the same time. But here’s what happened…”

\-------  
After finally getting rescued from wherever the hell they were, Keith became more attentive towards Shiro’s needs. Although the healing pod did most of the work, his hip wound was still burning his skin and left him out of commission for a few extra days. Coran sentenced him to stay bedridden until further notice. And so to make things easier, Keith offered the leader his assistance until full recovery. As expected, Shiro accepted the offer and everything proceeded normally. 

Today, they were supposed to clean and replace the wound bandages and try the new ointment Coran concocted a few days prior. Keith entered Shiro’s room. It was evident that Shiro was just leaving the shower so he waited patiently, his eyes circulating the room. Clean and proper, nothing less from his leader. 

He heard Shiro call out something to him but only caught the very last syllable. Not a moment sooner he emerged from the bathroom. A towel wrapped around his surprisingly compressed waist, the hot water trailing down his muscular frame, his smooth hairless skin shining from the moisture, and of course his rippling legs and pulsing arm muscles.

Keith had choked on the air for a moment.

“You set?”

“I think so. That uh, that won’t hurt right?” referring to the small tube in Keith’s palm

“I’d hope so. Coran supposes that it’ll be a cold tingling sensation instead of rubbing alcohol” he chuckled, “but that’s none of my business”. Shiro shot him a playful glare before walking past him and sitting on his bed. He patted the empty spot next to him. Keith dropped himself and uncapped the tube, squeezing a decent amount into his palm. He could feel the coolness from the gel seeping into his bones, wrapping every nerve and muscle with a blissful numbness. 

He began applying it to the wound, watching Shiro’s body tense at his touch. The way his muscles would flex and his throat hiss at the pressure, he looked amazing. 

“I was relieved to hear you had made it Shiro. I don’t know what would’ve happened if you-”  
“Keith”, his voice booming and stern, “Don’t”  
They remained quiet as he finished rubbing the ointment. As Keith began to unroll the fresh bandages, Shiro let out a sigh, adjusting his body to look the paladin in the eyes. Pushing the hand away before scooting a bit closer, their body heat suddenly making the room feel scourging.

“Keith, do you remember what I told you?”

He replied with an earnest tilt of the head. Shiro told him a lot of things, as in, a lot of things. Have patience Keith, control your temper, Keith, don’t throw the goo at Lance Keith. All of which he had accounted for, but he could tell that there was something particular his leader want to hear. He shook his head.

“If anything happens to me-”

“Stop!” he screeched. He hated when Shiro did this. Always going on about how he was supposed to be the new fucking leader again and again. Telling him how a leader would act, how he should act, about how he had potential to lead the team. He loathed it. And anytime the topic surfaced, it ended the same way. They scream and yell at each other and Keith would storm out and lock himself in his room. He didn’t want to talk about what he would do if his crush died. He could never replace Shiro, he was no leader, why couldn’t he see that?

“We need to have this conversation at some point Keith”

“No, we don’t” he said standing up, wanting to skip the arguing and just leave. But Shiro used those impeccable muscles to gain a firm grasp on his wrist, keeping him in place. He never did this before because Keith would thrash and kick and yell until he could sliver away but he wouldn’t right now, he hoped. Shiro was still injured, and so he hoped his fellow paladin would remain level headed.

Thank whatever god was watching them for keeping Keith grounded.  
“This isn’t something I want to talk about- because you're not going anywhere”

Shiro gave him that pitiful, apologetic, almost patronizing smile. The kind that would normally spark his attitude but nonetheless made his heart melt. The paladin shook his head slowly, gently pulling his comrade back down onto the bed. Keith stared into dark brown eyes which almost always had the mystic ability to delude his frustrations and smooth out rigid agitations-not to just him, but to his fellow paladins. He always pondered if Shiro would show him and only him- a face filled with love and want. He easily found himself lost in the depths of his leader's iris’ on multiple occasions because of how easy he was to be swept off his feet. Just like now, as his eyes trace every tint and mix of brown in those eyes and his pupils followed Shiro’s every move. If noticed by his friends, it would be described as his utopia. Nothing around him held relevance when he was in such a trance, he felt nothing, he heard nothing, he was muted. However, for once his barricade was breached and his senses returned to him as he felt Shiro’s free hand cup his cheek. When he didn’t react, Shiro slowly traced his hand down to hold Keith’s chin up, brushing his bottom lip with his thumb.  
This was unreal. This surely was unreal. But even as he replayed the thoughts in his mind Keith couldn’t deny the contact he was feeling. After being just the friend, the little brother from another mother, the shoulder to lean on for so long, he saw as an opportunity and slowly leaned in until their lips were ghosting over one another, from there Shiro took the lead and closed the gap. 

Fireworks almost.

Nevermind. Fireworks didn’t come close to what he had felt. Electricity, sparks, ignition, a flame, a blaze? He felt hot but it was warm enough that he wouldn’t burn. There was a shock. But not the kind you have when you stick your finger in a socket as a child. Keith quickly resigned from trying to assign a term for this moment, he was never one for words in the first place. He gave a small moan as his leader released his wrist and used that hand to push Keith’s head closer, deepening the already heated kiss. The red paladin’s eyes closed and melted into it as if it were the place he was destined to be. Here, with Shiro like this. But they are still human, so they were forced to pull apart for oxygen, however, they came forehead-to-forehead, staring into one another.

"I couldn’t imagine what I would do without you Shiro" Keith panted.

"Keith..."

"I hope you realize that now", Shiro nodded.

He blinked and quickly drew back, pushing Keith away.

“Shiro?”  
“Keith...this...we can’t. Not now, I don’t know when but we can’t now” Shiro snapped at him. What the hell was happening? So were his feelings reciprocated or was this his way of rejecting him nicely because he was getting mixed signals right now.

“This is wrong. So very, very wrong” he scolded. His face scrunched in disgust as he turned his head away, combing through moist hair. His breathing had hitched despite them having an air break for nearly a minute. He looked panicked and Keith didn’t know how he was supposed to respond. Was he supposed to take offense to the remark and comfort this man after he voluntarily kissed him?

“Shiro, tell me what’s wrong” Keith whispered, extending a hand to touch his leader’s shoulder. He was quickly swatted away and faced with a face of pure hatred and repulsion, “Get out. Now!” he screech, standing over Keith - towering over him menacingly. The red paladin scrambled out the door, running back to his room and locking himself in for the rest of the night. 

He did not sleep that night.

\-----------------  
He wasn’t able to relay what had transpired the next day because the water works had resumed. To him, it sounded like his son’s supposed best friend had slapped his face a hundred times over. As he pulled Keith’s face back into his shoulder he pondered on what he could do. Keith needed his father and this was his first chance to act like one.


End file.
